The iPhone gets yet another use: measuring car performance

The iPhone 3G is gaining yet another use thanks to a new application called …

Sure, you can limit you iPhone 3G usage to phone calls, SMS, a map or two, and the occasional photograph, but if you're feeling adventurous, your iPhone can become quite a bit more. And, as sound level measurement app SoundMeter proves, the sensors inside the iPhone 3G are actually quite good; they can be used for quite a few things you may not have thought possible. MacNN recently pointed out one such application, Dynolicious, which uses the iPhone's accelerometer to record vehicle performance data.

That's right, you can now see just what kind of performance numbers you car is putting up, even if you're just driving around town and want to see what part of the 0-60 of your Camry is at. By frequently measuring accelerometer data, Dynolicious can calculate the time it takes for you to reach any speed between 10 and 100 MPH. It can also give elapsed times and trap speeds (the speed of the car at the end) for a variety of distances, including the quarter and eighth miles.

If you have the urge to drive on a skidpad in order to measure g-forces, Dynolicious can handle those measurements too, and will provide lateral and braking forces. Last but not least, adding vehicle weight data to the app will allow it to estimate your wheel and engine horsepower. All of the data is displayed and graphed in real-time, and can be saved for later review.

As with SoundMeter, the Dynolicious readings are said to be pretty accurate once you have calibrated it, but the company s also planning to compare the app with dragstrip timing software. Another similarity between the two applications is that both have low prices. Dynolicious will run you just $13 on the App Store, so check it out if you're curious about just how many horses your car is producing.